2024-07-06 12:34:56
London: Keir Starmer of the Labour Party has defeated Rishi Sunak in the British elections. Experts are considering this as good news for India, because Keir is not an anti-India leader. Starmer has taken the Labour Party out of the Jeremy Corbyn era to win this election. The image of the Labour Party during Corbyn’s time has been that of alienating many groups. This included Hindus, Jews, whites and the working class. In 2019, the Labour Party suffered a crushing defeat. One group that was upset with Corbyn’s time were Hindus who were also traditional Labour voters. The image of the Labour Party during Jerenny Corbyn’s time became that of an anti-Hindu. But perhaps Corbyn’s biggest mistake was the unfortunate Kashmir declaration. In this, the Labour Party passed a resolution. It declared that there was a humanitarian crisis in the region and claimed that the people of Kashmir have the right to self-determination. Although Corbyn kept giving clarifications later, he did not receive an apology from the Indian community. For these reasons, the Labour Party continued to be seen as an anti-India party. In 2019, party leader Rajesh Aggarwal said, ‘As co-chairman of Labour Friends of India, I am clear that the matter of repealing Article 370 of the Indian Constitution is a matter for the Indian Parliament. It is not the job of Britain or the Labour Party to interfere in this.’
Labor Party was considered anti-India
Many experts believe that this was the time when the Indian diaspora started turning towards the Conservative Party. According to the 2021 census, there are 1.8 million British Indians in Britain, of which about 1 million are Hindus. A group called British Hindu Indian Votes Matter came up, which campaigned against the ‘anti-India’ and ‘anti-Hindu’ sentiment of the Labor Party. However, since Keir Starmer replaced Jeremy Corbyn, he started improving relations with Indian British and Hindus. He said in a meeting with Labor Friends of India, ‘Any constitutional issue in India is a matter of the Indian Parliament and Kashmir is a bilateral issue for India and Pakistan, which should be resolved peacefully.’
Starmer will improve relations with India
During his election campaign, Starmer kept insisting that he would not spoil relations with India. The 2024 Labor Party election manifesto includes a new strategic partnership with India, which includes a free trade agreement as well as deepening cooperation in areas such as security, education, technology and climate change. At the India Global Forum, Starmer said, “I would like to say clearly that now the Labor Party has changed. My Labor government will seek a relationship with India based on our shared values of democracy and aspiration. It will seek a free trade agreement. The Labor Party has always been seen as an anti-India and pro-Pakistan party.”
There is no place for Hinduphobia in Britain
Starmer also worked hard to end the anti-Hindu image of the Labor Party. Before the election, he visited the Sri Swaminarayan Temple in Kingsbury. He said here that there is no place for Hinduphobia in Britain and the Labor Party will build a new strategic partnership with India. Here he started his speech with Jai Swaminarayan and praised British Hindus for their rich Hindu heritage and deep commitment to the future of Britain. He promised, ‘If we are elected, we will run our government with a spirit of service, strengthened by Hindu values. You are not only contributing to our economy in a big way, but you are also bringing innovation and expertise.’